Ruminants as breeding animals
Prins, R.A.
Tijdschrift Voor Diergeneeskunde 106(4): 166-178
1981
ISSN/ISBN: 0040-7453 PMID: 7209950 Document Number: 181300
Domestic cattle are particularly well equipped physiologically to deal with diets high in roughage. It is considered that, in efforts to attain high levels of production, concentrates which are readily degraded and high in protein are being increasingly given to ruminants; this results in improper use of the ruminant, production losses and metabolic disorders due to unstable rumen fermentation. Most other large ruminants are even better than the European breeds of cattle in digesting poor roughage. It is suggested that in the near future, when it becomes necessary to use more roughages and agricultural lignocellulose wastes, a large rumen volume and a high salivation rate should be adopted as criteria of selection in the breeding of cattle.